After a month-long hiatus,
basketball will return to The World's Most
Famous Arena
on Thursday evening as the
Liberty will embark on the final leg of the 2008 WNBA regular season ... New
York has nine games remaining and three of those match-ups will come against Chicago ...
The WNBA's Olympic Break came at a time when New York was at its hottest
point of the summer, capturing six straight victories on its home court and establishing
the longest winning streak (three
games) on the road ... Heading
into Thursday night, the Liberty is looking to
maintain its spot (No. 2) amongst the Eastern Conference elite and pick up where it left off before
the designated time off ... The last time
these two clubs met, New York clinched the last post-season berth with a win over the visitors from the Windy City in the final game of the 2007 regular season ... The season series last year saw each draw two wins a piece.

Skinny:
Coming off this break, New York and Chicago will look to their floor
leaders to set the tempo early on Thursday evening ... In the
Liberty's last game, Moore tied a career high when she handed out nine
assists in a win over the Dream ... With Chicago's struggling summer
record of 8-17, New York will need to capitalize on these kind of
match-ups to position itself for post-season contention ... Canty could
return for the Sky after dealing with a knee injury, although if she does
not, Chaney was turning in some fine performances in the vet's place back
in July.

TEAM LEADERS

LIBERTY

Points: Christon, 16.4 Rebounds: Jackson,
5.7 Assists: Moore, 5.1

SKY

Points: Dupree, 17.2Rebounds: Dupree,
8.4Assists: Canty, 4.2

Etc.: The Liberty has seen great
success in seasons when there are Olympic Games ... In 2000, New York
recorded its first 20-win season in franchise history, finished in first
place in the East and made its second consecutive Finals appearance
... In 2004, the Liberty finished with an 18-16 record, was second
in the Conference and reached the Conference Finals under interim head coach Pat Coyle
... Following the Olympic Break in 2004, New York went
5-4.

Compiled by Maria Villena

To score tickets for this match-up, click here, visit The Garden Box Office or call 877-WNBA-TIX.